Agricultural extension service Uzice (AES) has presented to the public two new publications: Apple, plum, raspberry – from planting to harvest and Healthy cow – from stable to pasture. Manuals are prepared and published as the resonance to farmers' needs for additional information which are linguistically and stylistically most comprehensive.

Manuals are unique creation in the modern system of advisory support. After a number of years, these are the first manuals which are fully responding to farmers’ needs regarding writing style and structure, Mr. Jovan Mirosavljevic, director of Agricultural extension service Uzice, emphasised. Mr. Mirosavljevic added that manuals provide first information in proper manner. Aligned with proper professional and advisory support, they contribute to the improvement of farmers’ knowledge and practice, and by that, to the increase of production, better quality of fruit, dairy and meat products, and increase of overall income. Manuals are the collection of valuable advices and the most important knowledge needed for adequate cattle and fruit farming. They are designed for the beginners, so as for the producers that have already had experience in these types of production.

Circulation of 5.500 pcs for Apple, plum, raspberry – from planting to harvest and 7.000 for Healthy cow – from stable to peasture are defined according to the number of farmers that are actively involved in cattle or fruit farming and on the basis of information which are collected during the field work of this professional and advisory service. Printed version of manuals is going to be distributed to the farmers through the network of assistant advisors, employed in AES according to the regulations of Serbian government. AES intends to distribute internet version of manuals to other advisory and extension services so as to the Ministry of agriculture, trade, forestry and water management in order to be scaled to the whole territory of the Republic of Serbia and to contribute to the overall quality of fruit and livestock production.

Manuals are published with the support of Private sector development programme (PSD) which is implemented by Regional development agency Zlatibor-Uzice, and financed by Swiss government through Swiss agency for development and cooperation. Mr. Mirosavljevic also added that this was only the one of activities and announced the opening of first laboratory for soil testing in Zlatibor County so as the activities on building and strengthening cooperatives in livestock sector as the result of long-term cooperation between AES and PSD.